


When the War Ravaged Our Heart

by Beaversweat



Category: Naruto
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-22
Updated: 2020-04-22
Packaged: 2021-03-01 21:35:08
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 566
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23783995
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Beaversweat/pseuds/Beaversweat
Relationships: Jiraiya/Tsunade (Naruto)
Comments: 1
Kudos: 4





	When the War Ravaged Our Heart

But promise me, if I do make it back alive....  
She sat on the empty park bench, her pale fingers clutching a parchment and pen. The air was brisk and cold, but that wasn't what was making her short of breath. Although the scene had replayed in her mind many times a day, it had been years--20 in fact-- since she had returned to this spot. She had gone to great lengths over the years to avoid it, going so far as to take extensively long alternate routes just to avoid even the pathway the bench intersected with.  
Twenty years to the day since she had seen him. Begged him to return alive. He laughed; after so many years of rejection, of course he wouldn't have realized the weight of her desperation. Of course he wouldn't, she thought.  
Let's make a wager, then...  
She gripped her parchment harder, squeezing her eyes shut tight with a short guttural moan to ward off the tears. She hung her head low to hide her sorrow as a passerby walked along the path. "Better head home m'lady! A storm is approaching!" the passerby noted jubilantly. She only nodded, her emotions leaving her unable to speak.  
"Are you worried about him? I'm sure he'll return safely" her assistant said calmly. Tsunade turned with a smile. "He isn't coming back. I bet him that, you see, since I always lose."  
She remembered then gazing out of her office windows towards the paths that led far from Konoha, knowing that once he returned, things would finally be as they should be. There had been a bright fire of hope simmering within her that day. Days later that flame would be extinguished, and she would never feel that way again.  
It had taken years for her to not expect him to walk through the door, his sandals echoing through the hallways, his jubilant laugh brightening the room. She had dreams--strangely vivid dreams--in which they were together, together in the way that she had anticipated upon his return. She still grasped on to the notion that perhaps these vivid dreams were a gift from him, maybe his chakra, even, and those dreams were one of the few reasons she had made it so long without him.  
Her leadership duties as Hokage had ended many years ago, and each day she felt less and less useful to the village. Those that followed in her footsteps had been trained and molded well, and although she sometimes offered her advice, it seemed less and less warranted.  
You're looking more beautiful than ever...  
She finally succumbed to her grief, her shoulders heaving with sobs. She was nauseated with sadness, and she hadn't notice a gentle sprinkle begin to fall as thick clouds formed overhead. She leaned forward to disguise her outburst from any possible passerby, and she began to tremble.  
A fire crackled between them. The evening breeze cooled the sweat on the foreheads and led them to close their eyes, welcoming a rare moment of peace .  
What are your dreams?  
Mine? What a nice thought for you to have. Id like to travel the world and win at every casino across the land. You?  
I too want to travel the world. Maybe....I could...protect you on our travels?  
No thanks.  
She had been so blind. As shinobi on the frontlines of a treacherous war,


End file.
